Summer of Golden Sunflowers: A Summer Snippet Series for 2026

This summer I'm launching my first ever snippet series! Every Saturday over the summer starting the last week of May, I'll post a chapter (or snippet) of Summer of Golden Sunflowers.

I've been working on the rough draft for several months now but I'll be editing and polishing each snippet as I post it. It's pretty cheesy and definitely cringy at times, but very summery and lighthearted, and I'd love to hear what you think of each chapter in the comments!

Synopsis:

Ella doesn't just want to have a normal summer this year. She's planning to make it a stunning summer by splitting her time between working part-time to save for a car, and following her best friend Ryleigh through a somewhat chaotic annual bucket list. But when her crush is working at the local car dealership, her job doesn't work out the way she planned, and Ryleigh's bucket list proves to be a little too eccentric, Ella realizes that in no way will this be the perfect summer she dreamed about. But does that mean it can't still be good?

Here's a sneak peek of the first chapter that will be published on May 30:

You know that moment when life takes a drastic turn and you’re paralyzed in disbelief?

Then you go through the various stages of denial, and -- if you’re anything like me -- search desperately for a different solution. And, even if that solution manifests itself in a teeny tiny flicker of light on the other side of a deep, dark, scary (and possibly enchanted?) forest, you’ll go chasing after it with abandon.

But then, there are also those tough moments when there really is no solution. You just have to face the facts and live with your situation.

But this summer will not be one of those times. I know the problem, and the solution is right in front of me. Or rather, right outside my neighborhood.

I want to give a shout out to my friends Gracie and Emma for all their help with this project! Gracie's been a great pre-reader and encouraged me when I was about to give up and scrap the whole idea. She is a talented writer and has her own blog you can check out here.

Emma is the artist for the amazing artwork you'll see on a later post, and constantly inspired me with her excitement for the project (and kept me busy looking at all those color palate options).

I'm so excited to be releasing this series! Keep an eye out for the first snippet!